Category Archives: Bad Ass Beards

To continue in the spirit of our favorite month of the year–No Shave November–we bring to you today a redbearded wonder hailing from Jacksonville, Florida: Meet Matthew. We were fortunate enough to encounter Matthew and his amazing sweetheart Wendy and their daughter Dailyn at the Gentleman of the Road music tour in St. Augustine, Florida in September. Matthew has been growing his impressive beard since November 1st, 2012, and has no plans to stop: he explained to us, that, as he told his employer, it’s against his religion to shave, as his religion is Man. We’ll happily apply for membership into The Church of the Beard any day. Wendy told us she is quite fond of Matthew’s bad-ass beard, though it does get tiring fending off the attention her man’s mane garners. Matthew, who designs office interiors for a company in Jacksonville, told us his friends affectionately call him Mountain Man and we tend to agree: He’d fit right in with the bearded brotherhood in Denver! Like a woman with a pregnant belly, Matthew has to handle aggressive admirers who are often a little too eager to caress his beard, but we sympathize with the adoring public; it’s hard to resist such a work of art! Thanks Matthew, Wendy, and Dailyn, you made our magical musical weekend a little sweeter!

The Ladies of Beards of Denver are always ready, willing, and able to meet an impressive bearded man, but it was a first to meet a fabulous bearded man whose name IS Ready, but that’s just what we’ve got for you today. Ready, who we encountered at Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom in Denver while waiting for the band Shel to perform, proudly declared that he hasn’t shaved in five or six years, hence his burly mane. His beard is generated largely from laziness, and we don’t mind one bit. Ready said he can easily keep his beard long and luxurious because he’s been traveling so much: he lives in upstate New York and was visiting Denver to attend all three Phish shows at the end of August, and then was planning to head to South America. When asked his mom’s opinion of his beard, Ready shared that she doesn’t like it much because she thinks it makes him look “old and scruffy.” Move to Denver, Ready, where the beard love is unabashed and literally ready to embrace you!

Beards of Denver fans, we bring you today a Denver dude who has stayed true to the beard tradition even being literally thousands of miles away: meet Preston, who has been living in Afghanistan since January 2013. Preston contacted B of D from the base of the northern Afghanistan mountains (through the power of the mighty Facebook) and we are ever-so-glad he did. Preston is a true beard-liever, as even the summer heat of Afghanistan was no match for he and his beard; it stayed all summer, and he even proudly stated, “If I won’t shave my beard for a girl, Afghanistan stands no chance.” Preston is a fairly recent Denver transplant, moving to the Five Points neighborhood of our wonderful city in November 2012, and if all goes as planned he will be back in town shortly after the new year. Preston relocated to Denver for many fantastic reasons, including the abundance of sunshine allowing for long motorcycle rides with his beard blowing in the wind, as well as the many options for skiing and riding: this beard does them both! Having formerly served in the Air Force for six years, Preston now flies UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) for a company and this allows him to live, and grow his beard, where he chooses. He can’t wait to come back home to Denver and enjoy the craft beer, mountain biking, camping, and of course, get many more compliments on that gorgeous beard. This photo featuring Preston and his beard documents his recent “YEARD” achievement: the first time he has ever let his beard grow a full year! We could not be prouder, and approve of that cigar of celebration. Take care Preston and can’t wait to admire that beard in person when you’re back in D-Town!

Here in Denver, we are fortunate for so many reasons. We have tons of breweries from which to sample so much frothy deliciousness; we are able to get around on bikes almost anywhere in our wonderful city; and every night of the week there are a multitude of great live music choices to see. It is at one of our favorite venues, the Larimer Lounge, where we met Nate and his stop-you-in-your-tracks beard. We were there to see two wonderful bands–Shel out of Fort Collins and Whiskey Shivers out of Austin–and were pleasantly surprised to meet Nate between sets. Nate has been growing his amazing mane on and off since 2004, and has lived in Denver about 13 years. When he’s not playing the role of volunteer roadie for Shel he works at Renegade Publik House in Denver, which features many of the aforementioned delicious brews. Nate said his mom has a love/hate relationship with his beard (clearly we need to get her over to our side of pure appreciation) and–get ready for this ladies–he has no sweetheart!? With a beard like this and that much dapper style, that won’t be the case for long. Thanks Nate! We’ll be by Renegade to see you, and admire that beard of yours, soon!

As fans of Beards of Denver have likely come to know, the Ladies of Beards of Denver are very dedicated to the documentation and appreciation of The Beard. This story may not surprise most of you, then, as The Pursuit of Donald (as we’ll call it) involved chasing him down Broadway (a rather busy Denver thoroughfare) into Sputnik (one of our preferred watering holes) to get the story of his fantastic beard and bring it to you, our much-loved public. Donald and his impressive black beard, were on vacation a few months back in our fair city. From Kansas, Donald told us he had road-tripped to Denver to attend a family reunion and he said his family tolerates his beard because “They know I won’t change.” We would never want you to change that beard, Donald. Not ever. Donald told us his beard originates from laziness and that it also is a mechanism to become instant friends with other dudes with beards, and we can see why. When not attending to his beard, Donald reads a lot of non-fiction and plays a lot of guitar. You can serenade us and read to us by the fire any day Donald, as long as you keep that beard growing! (In case you’re curious, Donald’s bad-ass t-shirt features this band).

When you think of the 1990s, your first thought may not be bad-ass beards, but we are about to seriously change your frame of reference. Meet Mr. Rob Engelberth (left) and Mr. David Sands (right), whom the ladies of Beards of Denver were lucky enough to encounter at a ‘90s house party in Congress Park recently. Between listening to those sweet ‘90s melodies of Blink-182 and Nirvana (and drinking from the keg) we got the skinny on these two buddies and their beards.Mr. Sands was not only sporting his bitchin’ beard at the party, but also duct-taped together Air Jordans (‘90s, represent!) and besides showing off his style, he was also photographing partygoers, as he is the photographer behind David Sands Pictures (that is, when he is not caring for his beard). Speaking of beard-care, Mr. Sands applies coconut oil to his beard weekly under the direction of his lovely sweetheart Rachael, who is his “Beard Manager,” and she adores his beard even though it often smells like food and has ice cream in it (seems like a bonus!) Mr. Sands is a Colorado boy who has been in Denver the past 10 years, and he likes to keep his beard trimmed to about this length as the norm. Rachael has only seen him once clean shaved and “I hated it,” she told us. We knew we loved this woman almost as much as Mr. Sands’ beard.Mr. Engelberth (which means means “Birth of an Angel” in German, in case you were curious) has been in Denver since 2008 and shared with us the history of his mad facial-hair skills, as he was blessed with a full goatee when he was only a strapping young man of 17. Mr. Engelberth works downtown on his bike, and said he keeps his beard all summer because, even when it’s hot out, since he works outdoors, it just feels so damn good. We certainly appreciate and approve of that true-blue beard-dedication. Mr. Eneglberth’s amazing fiancé, Kim, is his number one beard fan and she attempts to help him care for those pesky split ends. A Congress park couple, we’re happy to be neighbors with this bearded gem and his lady. Thanks for keeping the beard pride rollin’, darlins!

Here at Beards of Denver, we are thankful for ALL the beards we encounter, but we are especially grateful for meeting Charlie during the Underground Music Showcase at the end of July. Charlie and his bad-ass beard were preparing to perform at UMS with the band Thanks to Philo, a blues-rock-reggae crew Charlie’s been the drummer in for three years. Charlie, who lives in Parker, says people love his beard and he gets a lot of attention for it (why are we not surprised he has other beard-groupies?) The only reason he has shaved in recent memory is for a charity event for the Children’s Miracle Network; obviously, his is one philanthropic mane, folks. The lesson here is ONLY shave if it’s ABSOLUTELY necessary for the children. Charlie’s family has polarizing opinions on his beard: his mom and his sweetheart love it while his dad isn’t a fan (likely because he only has a ‘stache himself). We’re with Charlie’s ladies on this one; a man with this stylin’ of a beard is apt to keep smart women around! Keep up the good growth, Charlie!

One of our favorite parts about this bearded community is that there really is an outpouring of support for the bearded man. Always wear your beard with pride, men of Denver. You never if there’s a B of D ghost writer on your trail. We owe a big “thank you” to our friend Amy for introducing us to these fine gentlemen. Meet Dave and Jack. Amy put together a question and answer sheet for them and set up a photo shoot. Nicely done, friend! Here’s how they answered (Dave loves the striped tie. Jack puts his hand in his pocket when drinking coffee):Dave:How old is your beard?Grew full beard when I turned 21 (When all men should)Does the beard give you trouble in the corporate world?No. I don’t let the man keep me down. (Gave us chills)Favorite part?Stroking it when in deep contemplation.What do the ladies think of your beard?Ladies love the beard. A woman who isn’t into bearded men probably isn’t into men. (Note: new t-shirt idea).Would you shave your beard for a particular job?Yeah, because the great thing about beards is they grow back.What does mom think of the beard?I’m not sure, we’ve never had “the talk”. She’s never said she dislikes it so I’ll go ahead and say she’s a fan.Jack:How old is your beard?On and off for the past 7 yearsDoes the beard give you trouble in the corporate world?No.Favorite part?Do you know how the drink “Tom Collins” got it’s name? What is the fastest route in and out of an IKEA? Those are the kinds of questions you have to be able to answer when you have a beard, so I guess it is the sense of public stewardship and responsibility that I enjoy most.What do the ladies think of your beard?It’s tough to discern the difference between a ‘good’ double-take and a ‘bad’ one, but so far I haven’t had any complaints.Would you shave your beard for a particular job?Are astronauts allowed to have beards?What does mom think of the beard?She thinks I’m covering my face. Like my beard is some sort of catcher’s mask that I’m forced to wear from time to time. At this point she’s used to it, but suffice it to say she’s not a huge fan.

Here at Beards of Denver we can’t get enough of our Ginger Beards. When Zac reached out to us to share his amazing beard, we were thrilled. Zac has been growing his beard on the regular for about six years, ever since he met his wife Blanca. It’s only been in the past four months that Zac has let his beard grow and really “be itself”. This bold move of free-flowing Beard Growth has earned him the nickname “BeardMan” with his colleagues at Wright Tree service, where he is the head foreman for the dead beetle kill trees in the Rockies west of Boulder.He and his Blanca moved to Denver about a year ago from Deadwood, South Dakota and can’t imagine living anywhere else, and we can’t imagine having this great beard move away! Bianca loves Zac’s beard because she feels it’s extremely unique and not just any man can grow a beard like his; we have to agree! Thanks Zac!

It’s not every night that you’re having a PBR at your neighborhood bar (in this case, The Atomic Cowboy on East Colfax) and spot an amazing red beard rockin’ an AK-47 t-shirt, but when you do, you know the stars have aligned. Such was the case when we met Owen recently. From Santa Fe, Owen was visiting friends in Denver with his girlfriend GiGi. GiGi loves Owen’s beard, and we can certainly see why. When he’s not taming that masterful beard Owen works in carpentry and framing, and of course, picking food out of his beard also keeps him occupied. Owen’s had this iteration of his glorious red beard since December and plans to keep it for at least a full year. But, really, why stop there Owen? We’d vote for FOREVER.